A Few Tips to Set Up Your Home Theater System

There is an increasing number of people who are getting home theater systems, which are a great way to enjoy movies at home with friends and family. There are many benefits to getting such a system in your home, such as saving money on movie tickets, transportation and snacks.

Here are a few tips that will help you with the home theater installation process:

Plan Everything Right

Installing a home theater system is a lot more than simply hooking up a TV and DVD player. To avoid making mistakes that can cause you to waste a lot of time, proper planning is necessary. The first thing that you would need to do is to plan the overall layout of your home theater. This means figuring out where you will place all of its elements.

There are two ways to do the planning part. You can either do it by using a computer program that lets you create a virtual plan of your setup, or you can use a pencil and paper. No matter which route you go with, planning will help you better understand the room's limitations so that you can optimize the available space.

Preparing the Setup

As you are waiting to receive all your equipment, you should start preparing your setup to save you some time. Ensure that you have all the needed wiring and cables. You can start placing labels in the room which will denote where every element of the system will go.

Organizing Your Wires Right

Buy some wire holders to keep all of the wires neatly organized. Color coding the different wires is a great way to keep track of which wire does what and goes where. You should take note of your wiring plans in a notebook, so that you have a reference if you ever need to replace a piece of equipment in the future.

Ensure You Have Enough Power Outlets

Every home theater system will be different. Some systems will be quite simple with just a few components. Others will be far more complex. One thing that you should know is that the more components your system has, the greater its power needs will be. You will need to have enough power outlets to plug in all of the needed components. Since most home sockets only have two outlets available, you will probably need to purchase one or two power strips to plug in all of your equipment. In order to better protect the sensitive electronics in your home theater setups against power surges, you should spend a few more dollars and get a power strip that has a built in surge suppressor.

Installing Light Sources

Proper lighting is crucial for a home theater. Too much light will make the picture appear washed out and too little will strain your eyes. One recommended setup is to place a soft light source behind the television or to its side. Getting dimmer switches is another good idea when dealing with lighting.

Testing Your System

Even the best home theater systems need to be tested once installed to verify that everything has been set up right. You can test the TV, DVD players and speaker systems. Try testing out your setup with a DVD that makes good use of your surround sound system. If you notice any problems, such as distorted audio, re-check the wiring to see if it's connected the right way.